TOAt some point in our childhood, many of us developed an aversion to the dark. I remember lying in my bed as a child with the Los Angeles Dodgers game playing softly on the radio, my eyes frantically searching the dark closet trying to discern what the moving shadows were and what dangers they represented. Growing up, we often conjure up monsters and nightmares to explain our fear, but more often than not it is the darkness itself that leaves us deeply unsettled. The experience of darkness as a disorienting reality, full of the unknown, seems to be deeply etched in each of our souls. In Genesis 1, God separated the light from the darkness. This was a creative and purposeful act that, in God’s sight, was good. However, after Adam and Eve’s rebellious decision and the entry of sin into the world, darkness took on a new meaning. It wasn’t just “out there.” The darkness was within us and pressing against us. In Jewish writings such as the Babylonian Talmud, darkness is a metaphor for the disturbing disorientation, the fear that overtakes a person. It also means evil and sin that leave the person struggling for direction, identity, and understanding of what awaits them. Similarly, Isaiah 9 uses the compound word tzalmavet (“deep darkness”) to describe the dark shadow of death that resides in every human heart.
Isaiah 60:1–3 subtly echoes the well-known story of Genesis 1. Once again there is contrast and separation, light and darkness. But in Isaiah’s account, the darkness that surrounds it will dissipate, not when the Lord, the author of creation, commands it, but when it arrives in its fullness. Isaiah is prophesying Advent, the coming of the King, who is light to all who are in darkness.
In this season of Advent, Isaiah’s words are an invitation to remember the first Advent. How utterly undramatic, but also how sublime, when the Light of the World came humbly like a baby to confront the darkness of sin in us all. Isaiah’s words are a celebration: “Arise, shine, for your light has come” (v. 1). The light illuminates our hearts to understand not only the depth of our sin but also the complete saving work of Jesus for us.
Isaiah’s brilliant words remind us of our calling. We cannot greedily hoard this light while we wait for his second Advent. The light must shine brightly outside of us so that the nations and our neighbors across the street can see Jesus clearly as the Light of the world (John 8:12). When the gospel of Jesus shines in us most deeply, it can only be reflected back to us through the light of worship and sharing the Good News.
Jon Nitta is the Pastor of Spiritual Formation, Discipleship, and Small Groups at Calvary Church in Valparaiso, IN.
This article is part of The Eternal King arrives, a 4-week devotional to help individuals, small groups, and families navigate the 2023 Advent season . Find out more about this special issue that can be used in Advent or any time of year at http://orderct.com/adviento.
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